Stand alone Fug

I was originally considering replacing my Pro Clear Pro 75 Wet/Dry filter with a new sump that I was going to make out of a 20 tall, but the 20 tall is a little to wide to fit in my stand and I don't really feel like cutting 3/8" out of the front and rear supports to get the tank in there.

Then I was thinking of building my own sump out of acrylic, but after pricing the acrylic needed it was going to coast me over $100 in just material.

So I'm thinking of placing a 10 gallon tank above my sump and having a stand alone Refugium.

I've read that it is best to have dirty water, straight from the DT feeding the fug. I can do this but it is a bit harder then taking a T off my return or even returning the output of my Carbon/GFO reactor to the fug.

The Fug would then drain back into the return portion of the sump and then back to the tank.

I guess my question is which is better...

1) T off the overflow box output sending 3/4 to the Wet/Dry filter and 1/4 to the fug.

2) T off the return of the sump sending some to the fug and the majority back to the DT.

3) Sending the output of the Carbon/GFO reactor to the fug, then to the sump return section.

Thanks for the help and advice.

Steve

 

Im getting ready to set my refugium up also. I decided to put a 20 gallon tank on a stand beside my display tank as a small display and use a small pump to pump water to the fuge. Then it will gravity feed back to the sump. Just waiting for my hole saw to get here so I can cut in my bulk heads.

 

Any other feedback or comments?

 

The easiest and most functional would be #1- T off the overflow. Add a valve on the fuge side to regulate flow, then set up an overflow from the fuge to the return section of the sump.

 

Thanks. It's not really the easiest partly because of my setup and partly because the plumbing from the overflow is I think Flexible PVC, like on pool pumps. I would need to hard plumb something, but what I started looking into the option of a stand alone further I don't have the room under the stand for a 10 Gallon tank above my sump.

I don't want to go HOB because of no space behind the tank and limit space on the side (where the overflow is now).

I'm leaning back towards a 20 High as a sump, fug, return.

I need a bigger tank to have more room under the stand.

That logic won't fly with the wife though.

I miss my 125.

Thanks everyone.